Prison Service Pay Review Body

Baroness Amos: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	The third report of the Prison Service Pay Review Body (PSPRB) on the pay of governor and officer grades in the Northern Ireland Prison Service has been published today and copies placed in the Library. I would like to thank the chair and members of the PSPRB for their hard work in producing their recommendations.
	This completes the PSPRB's work for the current year, their recommendations for HM Prison Service having been published and accepted by the Government last month.
	My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has decided that the recommendations will be implemented in full, with effect from the operative date of the award of 1 April 2005. The cost of the award will be met from within the existing budget allocation for the service.

Armed Forces Personnel Administration Agency: Key Performance Targets 2005–06

Lord Bach: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Ivor Caplin) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	The key targets have been set for the chief executive of the Armed Forces Personnel Administration Agency (AFPAA) for the financial year 2005–06. The targets build upon progress made by the agency since it formed on 1 April 1997 and reflect the importance of achieving joint personnel administration implementation while maintaining current outputs. Furthermore they provide customers with assurance that, in focusing on joint personnel administration and higher profile services such as pay and pensions, AFPAA will continue to give sufficient attention to the broad range of other outputs.
	To Deliver Pay
	To make 99.9 per cent of all pay payments by the due date (excluding late payments caused by events determined to be outside the control of the agency).
	To keep the monthly error rate of accuracy for the volume of payments within 0.1 per cent.
	To Deliver Pension Services
	To make 99 per cent of all pension payments (including new awards) by the due date (excluding late payments caused by events determined to be outside the control of the agency).
	To keep the monthly error rate of accuracy for the volume of payments within 0.1 per cent.
	To Support the delivery of Joint Personnel Administration Programme
	Achieve live service to the RAF by end March 2006. Live service to the RN and Army are to follow by end August 2006 and by end December 2006 respectively.
	To transform the Agency to deliver the Joint Personnel Administration services
	To transform the Agency to deliver joint personnel administration, to deliver 100 per cent of key critical path milestones in the agency transformation plan.
	To prepare for delivery of AFPAA services post 2009
	Develop the AFPAA contribution to the project team, establish and meet 100 per cent of milestones.
	To confirm that the broad range of AFPAA's outputs are delivered to agreed service levels
	To achieve 90 per cent of service levels selected by the customer.
	To meet approved efficiency targets for the delivery of core services.
	To reduce the unit cost by 2 per cent, which will contribute to a 12 per cent reduction over a four-year period from 2002–03 for the delivery of core pay and personnel administration.
	To deliver an efficient and effective MoD Medal Service
	To reduce the MoD Medal Office assessment backlog from 45,000 as at 1 April 2005 to 21,000 by 31 March 2006.

Reserve Forces (Call-out and Recall) (Financial Assistance) Regulations 2005

Lord Bach: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Ivor Caplin) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	I am pleased to be able to announce that new regulations governing the payment of financial assistance to reservists and their employers during mobilisation were laid before Parliament today and that subject to parliamentary scrutiny are due to come into effect on 14 April 2005.
	These changes represent a significant improvement in the assistance available to reservists and employers. They reaffirm our continuing commitment to the Reserve Forces and reflect the value we place on them and their contribution to the United Kingdom's defence commitments.
	These regulations have been prepared following a comprehensive consultation process, which I announced on 22 July 2004 (Official Report, col. 62 WS). They replace the previous complex and intrusive scheme which only matched individuals' earnings up to a rank-related threshold or band, with a separate hardship award scheme for those whose earnings exceeded the band for their rank. Payments to employers under that scheme were limited and complex.
	The full detail of the scheme of both reservists and employers are available in the documents laid before the House. I also propose that the financial limit shall be subject to annual review commencing in April 2006.

MoD Medal Office

Lord Bach: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Ivor Caplin) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	In my previous Statement on 16 September 2004 (Official Report, col. 162 WS) I gave an undertaking to keep the House informed of the progress with regard to the creation of the Ministry of Defence Medal Office.
	I am pleased to report that on 22 March I officially opened the MoD Medal Office which is now established at a single location within the Armed Forces Personnel Administration Agency (AFPAA) at Innsworth, Gloucester.
	The change from separate offices for each service to the new office is affording the opportunity to adopt common procedures based upon best practice. The significant investment in personnel, laser engraving and computer technology has already led to a substantial reduction in the backlog of medals assessment and engraving and underlines the priority and commitment the MoD attaches to the prompt delivery of medals to veterans, their relatives and serving personnel. Indeed, since the introduction of a new laser engraving facility at Innsworth, around 40,000 extra medals have been handed out to recipients.
	AFPAA assumed full responsibility for the management of medal output, target setting and performance monitoring with effect from 1 October 2004 and has successfully filled all of the 61 medal-related posts. While the introduction of the Suez Canal zone and Iraq medals has resulted in unprecedented numbers of medal applications (117,425 since 10 April 2004), the backlog for the Canal zone medal today is 13,275 compared with 21,371 as at 24 September 2004 and for the Iraq medal is 13,382 compared with 25,178.
	The formation of the MoD Medal Office is already producing significant benefits and I should like to pay tribute to the staff of the single service medal offices and the MoD Medal Office for their part in bringing about this improvement.

Defence Geographic and Imagery Intelligence Agency and Defence Intelligence and Security Centre: Removal of Agency Status

Lord Bach: My right honourable friend the Minister of State for the Armed Forces (Adam Ingram) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	With effect from 1 April 2005, the Defence Geographic and Imagery Intelligence Agency and the Defence Intelligence and Security Centre will both cease to have agency status. This change will facilitate improved management across current agency boundaries, enable simpler management and budgeting processes, reduce overheads, and enable a more effective response to customers' strategic and operational requirements.

Armed Forces Compensation Scheme: Lump Sum Awards

Lord Bach: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Ivor Caplin) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	My right honourable friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced last week in his Budget Statement that there would be a change to the tax regime for the new compensation scheme which will commence on 6 April 2005.
	I am pleased to confirm that because of the special demands of service in our Armed Forces, the Government have now decided that lump sums awarded to those who are able to remain in service after their injury or illness will be paid tax-free.
	This change reflects the importance that this Government attach to our Armed Forces in the event of injury or disability.

Helicopters

Lord Bach: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Defence (Geoffrey Hoon) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	I am pleased to announce that the Ministry of Defence has agreed a heads of agreement with Agusta Westland which commits us to working together towards a long-term partnering and business transformation arrangement. Although the details are subject to further negotiation with the company over the coming months, we expect this to provide significant efficiency and effectiveness improvements in how we support our helicopter fleet.
	Competition remains the cornerstone of our procurement policy. This applies to our future rotorcraft capability requirements, as elsewhere, in particular for the land lift (medium) element. As the defence industrial policy makes clear, however, value for money judgments can sometimes suggest different approaches. Since the Agusta Westland future Lynx project has already benefited from extensive assessment work and de-risking, it would be our preferred procurement option for meeting the land find and maritime (surface) attack element. This is, however, subject to continuing negotiations with the company to agree acceptable contract conditions and prices, which must meet clearly defined parameters.
	This approach is excellent news for Agusta Westland, for the highly skilled staff at its Yeovil plant, and for the British defence industry. Other key partners include Smiths Industries in Cheltenham and Thales(UK) in Raynes Park and Taunton, GD(UK) in St Leonards-on-Sea and South Dorset Engineering Ltd in Weymouth.
	We believe that, subject to negotiating the precise commercial details, the future Lynx represents a highly capable, value for money, solution to our requirement. We expect to make a final "main gate" procurement decision later this year. The contract is potentially worth over £1 billion.
	This is a key first milestone for the future rotorcraft capability programme, and is part of the commitment we made in last year's supplement to the defence White Paper to invest some £3 billion in our helicopter fleet.

Family Courts: Constitutional Affairs Select Committee Report

Baroness Ashton of Upholland: With the agreement of the Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs, I am pleased to inform the House that I have today placed in the Libraries of both Houses a copy of the Government's response to the Constitutional Affairs Select Committee's report of their inquiry into the operation of the family justice system.

Customs and Excise: Advance from the Contingencies Fund

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: My right honourable friend the Paymaster General (Dawn Primarolo) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	On 29 September 2004 the Economic Secretary informed the Treasury Select Committee that "In parallel with the operation Gestalt investigation the Metropolitan Police have also provided advice on a number of other Customs and Excise investigations concerning money service bureaux (MSB). David Varney, chairman, has asked the police to extend their investigation to cover these additional issues."
	The police are examining the preliminary material and will soon be ready to start the investigation. In order to progress the investigation most efficiently, the police have proposed using a joint team. This would mean a team of Customs' investigators working with the police. Departmental accommodation will also be made available.
	Parliamentary approval for additional resources of £5,000 for this new service has been sought in the Spring Supplementary Estimate for HM Customs and Excise. Pending that approval, urgent expenditure of this £5,000 has been met by repayable cash advances from the Contingencies Fund.

Companies House: Key Performance Targets 2005–06

Lord Sainsbury of Turville: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (Gerry Sutcliffe) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	I have set Companies House the following targets for the year 2005–06:
	By March 2006 to provide the capability for 80 per cent of documents1, which it would be possible to e-enable, to be submitted online.
	To ensure that the following services: Companies House Direct; WebCheck; and webfiling, are available for 99 per cent of the time between the hours of 7 a.m. and midnight, Monday to Saturday.
	To achieve 35 per cent take-up for electronic submission of documents1 by the end of 2005–06, 55 per cent take-up by the end of 2006–07 and 75 per cent take-up by the end of 2007–08.
	To achieve, on average, a monthly compliance rate for accounts and annual returns submitted of 92 per cent.
	To ensure that 97.5 per cent of all forms submitted to Companies House are captured error-free.
	To ensure that of 99.5 per cent of images placed on the Companies House image system are legible.
	To achieve for 2007–08 a reduction in real terms of 10 per cent compared to 2004–05, in the unit cost of the range of transactions covering registration, company search and active register size.
	To achieve a score of more than 85 per cent in each quarterly Companies House customer satisfaction survey.
	To resolve 97 per cent of complaints within five days.
	To achieve, taking one year with another, a 3.5 per cent average rate of return based on the operating surplus expressed as a percentage of average net assets.
	To pay all bills due within 30 days, or on other agreed credit terms, on receipt of goods or services or a valid invoice whichever is later.
	The chief executive to reply within 10 days to all letters from Members of Parliament delegated to her for reply.
	1 A document is an individual transaction that a company can make with Companies House to submit or register information

Insolvency Service: Key Performance Targets 2005–06

Lord Sainsbury of Turville: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (Gerry Sutcliffe) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	Against a planning assumption of dealing with 45,000 new insolvencies and 81,000 new claims for redundancy payments, I have set the Insolvency Service the following targets for the year 2005–06:
	
		
			 Published Targets 2005–06 Target 
			 Process Redundancy Payment claims for payment within:  
			 3 Weeks 70 per cent 
			 6 Weeks 92 per cent 
			 Reduce the unit cost of enforcement activity by 25 per cent 
			 Increase enforcement activity outputs (disqualification, bankruptcy restrictions orders and reports by official receivers of criminal conduct) by 41 per cent 
			 Reduce average time for concluding disqualification proceedings to 22 months 
			 Increase the level of public confidence in the service's enforcement regime to 55 per cent 
			 Increase the level of user satisfaction index to 88 per cent 
			 Reduce the bankruptcy administration fee by 
			 1 April 2006 to £1,600* 
			 Reduce the company administration fee by 
			 1 April 2006 to £1,920* 
		
	
	* Not adjusted for inflation
	In addition to the above targets I have asked that, as part of its efficiency promise, the service looks to reduce the costs of accommodation and procurement by 8 per cent by 31 April 2006 from the 2003–04 baseline, and further reduce the costs of redundancy payment processing by 2.5 per cent by 31 April 2006. Overall I have asked the service to produce efficiency gains of at least £6 million over the period to 2007–08.
	The service will also be seeking re-accreditation to the Investors in People standard by January 2006. The service is also required to meet centrally promulgated targets relating to replying to correspondence from honourable Members, reducing the level of sick absence and processing payments to suppliers. From 1 April 2004 the service's case administration work has been funded by its fee income and the service is also required to ensure that it balances its costs and income over a three-year period.

Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme: Eighth Report to Parliament

Lord Warner: The eighth report to Parliament on the pharmaceutical price regulation scheme (PPRS) was published today.
	The report, entitled PPRS: Eighth Report to Parliament, covers the negotiations and the 2005 scheme and the management and operation of the 1999 scheme including the delivery of the 4.5 per cent price cut and consolidated information on company annual financial returns. The report sets out the contribution made to the economy by the UK based pharmaceutical industry and gives an update on international price comparisons.
	Copies of the report have been placed in the Library.